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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● World University Games ● The Winter World University Games in Turin (ITA) concluded on Thursday, with France dominating the medal table with 40 total, including 18 golds (18-8-14).
Germany had 23 medals (6-9-8) for second, followed by South Korea (20), Japan (19) and Finland and host Italy (15).
The U.S. won two medals (0-1-1), with the men’s curling squad earning a silver and Jackson Crockett winning a bronze in men’s Freestyle Skiing Dual Moguls.
The Koreans had the big individual medal winners, as three-time Worlds medalist Gil-li Kim (age 20) won five golds in the women’s Short Track 500-1,000-1,500 m and two relays, and Whi-min Kim was right behind with a bronze in the women’s 500 m, silvers in the 1,000-1,500 m and two relay golds (2-2-1).
Four others win four medals, with the men’s Short Track dominated by Korean Tae-sung Kim, who took the men’s 500-1,000-1,500 m and the Mixed Relay.
● World Rankings ● Did you know there is a comprehensive World Ranking of Countries in Elite Sport (WRCES), across 115 sports?
It’s been compiled since 2014, created by Nadim Nassif, Associate Professor in Physical Education and Sports from Notre Dame University-Louaize (NDU) in Lebanon. It is updated annually by an NDU think tank, the International Center for Sport Policy & Governance.
For 2024, the U.S. was the top scorer again, winning for the 10th straight time – no rankings for the Covid year of 2020 – taking the top spot in 23 sports and second in five more. The top five:
(1) 2,002,738: United States
(2) 1,386,924: France
(3) 1,209,710: Great Britain
(4) 1,086,311: Italy
(5) 930,963: Japan
China ranked sixth, Australia was ninth, Canada was 12th and Russia, widely excluded due to its invasion of Ukraine, ranked 31st, one spot behind … Ukraine (30th).
● Alpine Skiing ● World Cup wins record holder Mikaela Shiffrin of the U.S. will return to the slopes at Courchevel (FRA) for a Slalom on 30 January.
She posted a short video on her Instagram page of her skiing once again, after recovering from a crash on 30 November in a Giant Slalom at Killington, Vermont. She needed surgery to deal with complications from a puncture in her right side.
She was trying to win her 100th World Cup race in Killington, and will try for her 100th in Courchevel.
● Athletics ● One of the youngsters being watched for a breakthrough in 2025 is 17-year-old Gout Gout, the 2024 World U-20 200 m silver medalist from Australia. Born to parents from South Sudan who moved to Australia, Gout has shaken the track & field world with his All Schools Championships wins in Brisbane in December in 10.29 and the 20.04, the top U-20 time in the world for 2024.
Adidas signed him to a sponsorship deal, managed by veteran Australian rep James Templeton and coached by Di Shepherd. Now he’s in Florida, for a training block with American coach Lance Brauman, and training with Olympic 100 m champ Noah Lyles. Said Templeton, in an interview with SportsBoom:
“Did Lance see something special in Gout, yes he did and because Noah Lyles is with adidas and Gout now is too, adidas and Lance thought it would be good for Gout to meet Noah and train in Florida for a couple of weeks in 2025.”
And perhaps to an NCAA career? Probably not, according to Templeton:
“Most likely he will attend university in Queensland. He’s a straight A student, who will continue training in Ipswich and Brisbane with the likelihood of further training stints to Florida. He just wants to be a teenager with his friends around. That’s perfect because to Di and I, there is no rush.
“We are on a journey that should last ten years or longer. Over time he will sign with global brands, it makes no sense to overcommit him now. He will sign bigger deals when the time is right.”
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A final note on the great Fred Newhouse, who passed away on Monday at age 76.
Newhouse won the 1976 Olympic 400 m silver in Montreal at 44.40, his lifetime best with automatic timing; he ran two hand-timed 44.2s in 1972. If we look at that 44.40 in today’s terms, consider:
● 44.40 would have been second at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials
● 44.40 would have made the Paris 2024 final and placed sixth!
Newhouse is underrated because he didn’t win the Olympic gold in Montreal, passed in the final 60 m by Cuban star Alberto Juantorena. Newhouse now ranks no. 44 on the all-time U.S. list, but he was at his best when his best was needed.
● Golf ● Not directly Olympic-related, but a fascinating letter was circulated by two-time PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas, 31, to his fellow golfers, asking for more and better cooperation with the PGA Tour television partners. It included:
“We’re incredibly lucky to have many passionate people tuning into watch us every week, but let’s be honest – this game can feel a little distant at times.
“The more I think about it, the more feels giving more access and insight can make a WORLD of difference. Things such as pre-round interviews, mid-round interviews, wearing a mic, communication of any equipment/swing changes you’re working on with broadcasters, etc.
“I know stepping outside of our comfort zones isn’t always easy, Believe me, in the past I’ve been the first to say ‘no’ before things are even done being asked. I’ve had no interest when someone asks for an interview mid-round or suggests trying something new.
“But I also know how much the fans love those moments – hearing our thought processes, conversations with our caddies, our reactions to the shots, and understanding the ups and downs of competing at the highest level I’ve recently done mid-round interviews at both Hero [World Challenge] and [The] Sentry and found them totally fine and easy. While we may (at least know I do) think it’s not that important interesting, our fans do.
“Our Fan Forward research shows that ‘on-course personality’ is the highest ranked driver of interest for young fans (18-34). Getting the younger age group interested and watching our sport could be a huge difference in our popularity. They love the opportunity to be able to have that connection to us as fans, and humanizes us.
“The more I’ve watched documentaries and specials on streaming services on other sports the more I’ve come to realize the main reason I love them so much is the access they provide and the insight the players are giving me; a fan of them and their craft. I had no interest in rooting for certain players, teams, coaches before watching a handful of shows and games. But the way some of them show their cards and how they go about everything makes mean even bigger fan.”
He also noted:
“The more we work with NBC/CBS/ESPN, the more they should be able to work with us. I’m sure many of us feel the telecasts can be better let’s help them do that. I firmly believe if we make an effort to do some of the things I’ve mentioned that we’ll be proving we care and want to improve the experience for our fans – and that our broadcast partners will need to do the same.”
Observed: Communications professionals around the world are bobbing their heads up and down – yes – that athletes and media do not have to be enemies, but can both win by cooperating with each others. Let’s see if Thomas’ comments have any impact on his fellow players … or in any other sport.
● Handball ● At the IHF men’s World Championship in Croatia, Denmark and Norway, the “Main Round” is progressing, with three teams now confirmed into the quarterfinals:
● Group I: With one game to play, three-time defending champion Denmark is 4-0 and Germany is 3-1-0 (W-L-T), with both into the quarters.
● Group II: France is 4-0 and into the quarters, with one game to play. Hungary is 2-1-1 with North Macedonia (1-1-2) and the Netherlands (2-2) at four points with the last match on 25 January.
● Group III: Two games to play, with Portugal (2-0-1) at five points and Sweden (1-0-2) at four points, as is Brazil (2-1-0).
● Group IV: Also two games left, with Iceland (3-0) leading the group and three teams with four points each: Croatia, Slovenia and Egypt (2-1-0).
The quarters will start on 28 January with the final in sight now on 2 February.
The U.S. is in the President’s Cup playoffs for places 25-32 and has two games left to determine which place-game it will play.
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